SNOWFIRES (18 page)

Carl patted her hand. “And I’m enjoying
myself, dear. More than I have in years.”

Geneva preened and batted her eyes. “Let’s
dance, Carlsy.” She leaned forward to give Winston a good view of
the goods.

Hell, if Trent hadn’t watched her
performance, he wouldn’t have believed a woman at this level of
society could be so obvious. He’d seen shorefront saloon
prostitutes act with more subtlety. Winston looked as if he almost
peed in his pants hurrying to get her on the floor and in his
arms.

When they’d left, Holly let out a sigh.
“Guess I’ll soon be rid of her. Poor Carl.”

Laura watched the couple walk away. “That
dress is even more scandalous up close. You could see the whole
nipple outline through that flesh-colored knit slip. And it’s for
sure she’d had a bikini wax.” She turned and looked at Trent.
“Oops, sorry. Guess I didn’t mean to say that out loud.”

He smiled and shrugged. What should he say to
that?

Holly rescued the situation. “Carl’s wife
died ten years or more ago after a long illness. Usually he comes
to these events for an hour and speaks to friends then leaves.”

“
Looks like he won’t go home alone
tonight.” Laura leaned forward. “If he and Geneva marry, does that
make him your stepfather?”

At least that made Holly laugh. “I don’t
think so. What it makes me is free of her and her excessive
spending. Carl’s rich as Midas and can afford her; I can’t.”

Rob coaxed Laura back onto the floor.

Trent let duty force him to ask, “You want to
dance?”

Holly shook her head. “Let’s just sit here
while no one else is at the table.” She twirled the stem of her
glass. “So, is it as you thought?”

He scanned the room again. “No, not
exactly.”

“
Everyone—well, except for the ever
spiteful Geneva—has been nice to you, though, haven’t
they?”

“
Yeah, I suppose. If you don’t count
that Stan guy. Damn I wanted to punch him.” Trent still wanted to
punch him.

She laughed. “I often felt the same way,
which is why I stopped dating him.”

“
Is he as shallow as he seems? No,
forget I asked. How could he be and walk and talk?

“
Unfortunately he’s even more so.
Nothing of substance ever enters what passes for his brain.” She
drew a design on the tablecloth with her thumbnail. “My dad thought
I should marry him, if you can believe it.”

“
Damn. What would you talk about?”
Walter Tucker was nuttier than Trent had thought if he’d wanted
Holly to marry that Ken doll imitation.

“
His tennis, squash, and golf games,
his tailor, his barber, his boat.” She grinned at him. “That’s
about it.”

“
Damn, people like him should not
reproduce.” He finished his drink.

“
True. But they do, just not with me.”
She frowned. “I hope Jenny isn’t serious about him. He’s wealthy,
but...”

He patted her hand. “She probably has better
fish to fry at school. Maybe there was a little sibling rivalry in
her choice of dates.”

The idea obviously surprised her. “Maybe. I
hadn’t though of that.”

His feet had recovered and he saw Laura and
Rob headed for the table. “Ready for another dance?” He stood and
offered his hand.

“
Sure.” She led him onto the floor then
turned and met his gaze. “At least you’re making some good contacts
and maybe even having a nice time.”

He pulled her into his arms. Thank heavens it
was a slow dance so he could hold her close. “I’m here with you.
How could I not enjoy myself? And I have it on good authority the
party may continue after we leave here.”

“
Oh, no, sailor, that’s when it
begins.” She snuggled into him.

Her remark made him misstep. “Sorry, hormones
attacked my feet.” When she giggled, he twirled her to prove he
could. “Guess I’ll get the hang of this life eventually.”

Who the hell was he kidding? He fit in here
like an onion in a flowerbed. Most people had been polite, but
damned if he believed they welcomed him.

What if he succeeded? What if he pulled the
deal off and became one of the wealthy?

Ha, he’d never fit in here.

And Holly? Where was that headed? He wasn’t
stupid. A roll in the hay with a beautiful woman was great, and he
wasn’t about to turn it down. But he wanted more from her.

A lot more.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Holly
sipped
her coffee and smiled at memories of last night.

Marnie refilled her cup. “Don’t you look like
the cat who ate the cream? Never knew you to sleep this late. I
guess that means you had a nice time at that party.”

“
Mmmhmm. I’m glad I went after all.”
Holly took another sip of her coffee and set the cup down. “I
forgot to set my alarm and snoozed right through time for church.”
She wasn’t sorry; she wanted a day to relax and savor her last two
evenings with Trent.

“
Your grandparents will be pleased
you’re going out. They worry about you.” Marnie set a cheese Danish
in front of her.

“
I know they do.” Holly sniffed and
decided the Danish was fresh from a bakery. “Did you buy these this
morning?” She took a bite. Lovely.

“
No, Mr. Macleod brought them by when
he returned Mr. Joe Bob’s tux.”

Geneva swirled through and poured herself a
cup of coffee. “Holly Ann Tucker, did I hear correctly? You loaned
that man your grandfather’s clothes? The nerve.”

“
I checked with Grandpa first.” Not
that it was any business of Geneva’s.

Anger turned Geneva’s face a splotched red.
“And how could you attend one of the most important parties of the
year with that man? I was humiliated you could be so crass in front
of all our friends.”

Holly fought for her temper. “Like it
or not, Trent Macleod is a business associate. If he succeeds,
Marvel succeeds and your shares—oh, pardon me,
your daughters’ shares
—are secure.” Holly took
no pleasure in being catty, but Geneva deserved worse.

“
That’s no excuse to parade him around
everyone. And I saw how you clung to him like ivy on the dance
floor.” Geneva pointed a finger at Holly. “I’ll bet there’s
something between you two and it had better stop. Have you
forgotten that man is responsible for your father’s
death?”

Choosing her words carefully, Holly
watched her stepmother. “I haven’t forgotten you
said
Trent was to blame, but he’s
never displayed the sort of temperament you accused him of showing
to Dad.”

Geneva slammed her cup onto the table
heedless of the liquid’s splashes. “Are you saying I lied? How dare
you, you ungrateful girl. After I treated you like my own
daughter.”

“
Ignored me, you mean, unless you
needed a babysitter or scapegoat—or someone to pick up the tab. Let
it go, Geneva. You are only here because I promised Dad I would see
Jenny and Angie are taken care of. And if you want to talk about
hanging on someone, you’d better look at your own door—and
Carl’s.”

“
I won’t listen to this.” Geneva
stormed out of the room.

Marnie smiled and mopped up the spilled
coffee.

Holly finished her roll and went to the room
she called her study. Right. Where she studied bills and tried to
figure a way to pay them.

Yesterday’s mail had brought another stack of
dreaded windowed envelopes. “No use putting off the bad news.” She
picked up the letter opener and dug in.

Jenny knocked at the door. “Hey, Holly. I’m
headed back to the dorm but I’m out of cash. Can you tide me over
with a couple of hundred?”

Unfortunately for her sister, Holly had just
opened the bill for the suede birthday boots. “No.” She held up the
bill. “Three hundred dollars for a pair of suede boots for my
birthday? Jenny, I would have preferred something simple you paid
for out of your allowance. What kind of present comes with a
bill?”

Jenny looked genuinely puzzled. “But, but you
always pay for our charges. You know we don’t have much cash.”

Holly shook her head. “Not anymore. I’m
canceling your credit cards. From now on, you pay for what you get
out of the money I give you at the first of each month.”

Jenny’s mouth gaped. “Canceling our charge
cards? You can’t. Holly, I have to dress properly. And there’s the
sorority party coming up and I’ll need a new dress and shoes.” She
looked at her hands. “And my hair and nails done and a
pedicure.”

And how much would that cost, Holly wondered.
“Jenny, listen carefully. The free ride is over. You’ll have to
budget your allowance or do without. Or, you could get a job. It’s
time to grow up and accept responsibility.”

“
A job? That’s not fair.” Jenny ran
from the room. “Motherrrrrr.”

Holly heard her steps on the stairs.

Within minutes, Geneva stamped in. “You’ve
driven poor Jenny to tears. What’s this nonsense about credit cards
and a job?”

“
The cards are history, cancelled. If
you use yours, you’ll have to pay the charges.”

Holly tapped the stack of bills. “I refuse to
pay for extravagant purchases, Geneva. It’s true I make a nice
salary, but it barely covers the upkeep on this house. In the few
months since Dad died, you’ve almost ruined my finances. I can’t
afford you any longer, and you’re not doing the girls any favors by
letting them spend endlessly.”

“
You won’t get away with this.
I’ll—I’ll, well, I’ll think of something.” She turned and made
another angry exit, shoving Marnie aside at the doorway.

Marnie set a tea tray containing and another
Danish on the desk and patted Holly on the shoulder. “Don’t worry,
dear. Her type will be off with another man soon and out of your
hair.”

“
I know. Ugh, you should have seen her
last night hanging on Carl Winston.”

“
That nice man? Too bad, especially
since he’s one of your grandfather’s closest friends. That might be
awkward.” Marnie looked toward the doorway. “You’d think Mr.
Winston would have more sense.”

“
She hung all over him and called him
‘Carlsy.’ It was sickening. And her dress was
scandalous.”

“
Yes, I was on the way to my rooms when
she came down. It was very...revealing.” Marnie gave Holly’s
shoulder another pat. “You looked lovely, though, dear. Mrs. Ila
Mae has exquisite taste in clothes and you wear them so
well.”

“
Maybe she should have helped
Geneva.”

Marnie tut-tutted. “I don’t think that’s
likely. For one thing, Mrs. Tucker probably would have thrown out
any dress Mrs. Ila Mae gave her.”

“
I wish I could throw Geneva out and
never see her again.” She sighed. “But, I promised Dad to take care
of the girls. I guess Geneva’s part of the bargain.”

“
Hmph. And after what she did to your
father.” Marnie whirled and her eyes widened as she clamped a hand
over her mouth.

“
What did you mean by that, Marnie?”
Holly froze in place.

Marnie shook her head and wouldn’t meet her
gaze. “Nothing. Nothing at all.”

Holly rose and stood in front of her
housekeeper. She touched Marnie’s arm. “Marnie, tell me what you
meant.”

Marnie shook her head. “Can’t. When you all
came to live here and I stayed on, Mr. Joe Bob made me promise I
wouldn’t cause trouble between you and Mrs. Tucker.”

“
There’s already trouble between us,
and I suspect it will only get worse now.” She tugged Marnie’s
hand. “Please tell me exactly what you meant just now. What did
Geneva do to Dad?”

Marnie looked as if she’d cry. She shuffled
to one of two fireside wing chairs and sat down. “I never told
anyone. Maybe I should have.”

Pulling teeth would be easier, but Holly was
determined to learn what this was about. Something told her it was
bad and of major consequence. She sat across from Marnie. “Told
what?”

“
That day Mr. Tucker had the heart
attack, it wasn’t because of Mr. Macleod, although your father was
plenty mad at his offer to let him stay on at the company as second
in command. But it was a nice offer and Mr. Macleod made it in a
very tactful way.”

“
He did?” Holly smiled at the
confirmation of Trent’s version. Not that she doubted him, but it
was nice to know there was another witness in case Geneva continued
her accusations. “And what else. Get to the part about
Geneva.”

Marnie refused to look at Holly. “After Mr.
Macleod left she said some awful things. How Mr. Tucker was
worthless as a man and a husband. How she was taking the girls and
going to her parents and he’d never see them again.”

“
Oh, no, that must have broken his—his
heart. Oh.” Holly wanted to cry for her poor father and at the same
time she wanted to choke Geneva. “So that’s why he had the heart
attack.”

Marnie nodded. “I wanted to tell you, but I’d
promised Mr. Joe Bob, just like you promised your father to take
care of the girls. And it wouldn’t have brought him back. Thank
goodness I overheard and called the ambulance. Ohh”—Marnie clapped
a hand to her mouth again—“I didn’t mean to say that.”

Cold rage swept through Holly. “Geneva didn’t
even call for help? You mean she stood and watched my father
collapse and didn’t try to help him?”

Marnie shook her head. “Mr. Joe Bob will fire
me for sure.”

Holly stood and kissed the older woman’s
cheek. “No he won’t because he’ll never know. But I’m going to kick
Geneva’s sorry ass out of here.”